Master code: some hotels do not change it. It could be a standard “0000”, found in the user manual in the lock, or even found on the Internet! Simple codes such as “1234” are easy game for burglars too.

Master key / master magnetic card: each safe the hotel orders comes with one, so a hotel will probably have hundreds and thousands of these. If these are not secured properly, they can used by staff / thieves to steal.

We do not recommend door bars (large and heavy) and door wedge alarms (can’t be used in many cases as it requires a specific distance between the door and floor; it may even be seen by thieves outside your door).

1a. Best performance: Pacsafe Travelsafe 5L, 12L GII Portable Safe

This is another quality product from Pacsafe, which is the global leader in making anti-theft bags.

As with all their products, you can rest assured that the Travelsafe GII Portable Safe is well constructed, well designed, and comes with all the essential anti-theft properties.

One concern is that as the bag is embedded with steel wire mesh (criss cross manner), there are small areas which a really determined thief can cut through and steal your small items.

That however, is highly unlikely. A thief would rather choose an easier bag, as cutting up multiple small areas hoping to strike gold just sounds foolish – it takes too much time and effort.

And there is a simple workaround – just put your small items into a bigger folder / holder / item in the bag and it can’t be stolen.

Another concern is more valid however – the TSA 3 digit combination lock provided is just not good enough. First, TSA locks are easily broken. Second, there are only 1,000 combinations. A thief who takes 1 – 2 seconds to test every combination will only need 16 – 33 minutes. If your number is in the middle, that will reduce it to 8 – 16 minutes.

As such, if you do get this bag, we highly recommend getting the 4 digit combination padlockby Desired Tools which is sturdier and brute force testing of every combination takes 10x longer – a thief will have to go through 10,000 combinations.

What others have to say

Worked as advertised. No problems with the included lock if you patiently follow the instructions. If you are concerned about the security of the included lock, you can use a different one. I don’t know why this lock needs to be TSA compliant unless you are planning on checking it with things in it – not sure what scenario would produce that condition?

I have the 5L version. I used it in Moroccowhere there aren’t always safes in the rooms. I cabled it to some bathroom plumbing. It easily fits a couple of iPads, camera, a couple of pill cases and still has room for a bit more.

Only drawback is that it’s a little heavy and thick. It does take up space in your bag.

TIP: Don’t mind the negative review about being able to cut into it and pull cash / passports / smaller items out through the open mesh. Just put these items inside larger items. For example, I put my passport and some cash inside my iPad case. It will substantially reduce the possibility of someone being able to retrieve the contents of the bag through a hole cut in between the mesh.

If you are going to be staying in places without safes or other security options, this is a good choice.

Took this on vacation and loved it. Great for the beach if you have a good place to lock it to. We put in both of our kindles, both of our phones, small camera and wallets and still had more room. It was so nice to be able for both of us to go into the water at the same time without worrying that someone would steal our belongings.

Great product! I’ve stayed at some hotels where there haven’t been a safe for some reason. And I’ve certainly been to parks, beaches etc., where I’ve felt a need for a product that keep valuable safe in the car while I enjoyed the day.

Now I feel like I can leave my GPS, or laptop in the trunk, secure in my pacsafe, while I go to the beach. Hopefully, I won’t be proven wrong one day. This travel safe is large, fits my gps, and 14″ laptop easily. And it’s easy to use.

Key features

Lockable: TSA accepted three-dial combination lock included to secure stainless steel cable to a fixture in your hotel room, by the pool, in the car, or in-flight.

Ergonomics: the portable safe folds down flat to fit in your luggage when you’re not using it and comes with carry handles for convenience. Exterior is also water resistant.

Compartment: interior features padded EVA foam laminated and soft brushed polyester lining. The 12L fits up to a 15-inch MacBook, while the 5L will fit an iPad (10-inch tablet), camera, jewelry, and other small items.

One of the top selling portable safes on Amazon, this safe has also been featured on many travel media, such as Business Insider, USA Today, Travel Weekly and more.

Why? Because this product is sturdy, roomy, affordable, convenient and flexible with its combination lock or key access.

However, our main gripe is again, the 3 digit combination lock. Such a lock only provides 1,000 combinations. Should a thief take 1-2 second to test every combination, a thief will only need around 16 – 33 minutes to crack your lock. If your number is somewhere in the middle, that means 8 – 16 minutes are all that is needed.

On the other hand, a 4 digit combination lock has 10,000 combinations, which means it takes 10x the time required to crack the same lock by testing every combination. Unfortunately, the 3 digit combination lock is a permanent fixture of this product and cannot be changed.

That said, at this price range, we believe the SafeGO product still represents great value for money and the 3 digit lock should still suffice as a deterrent.

What others have to say

Purchased this for my trip to Jamaica just to be safe. First let me say that the product does hold much morethan I was expecting. Whenever we left the beach we would lock the safe around a tree next to our chair, to our chair, or any place close by that we needed.

The SafeGo was built very sturdy and I never had any worries about someone either taking or breaking into the box while we were away. The lock was sturdy and I never felt worried leaving my items in it unattended.

I was able to comfortably put two Galaxy S6 Edge phones, lighter, keys, cigarettes, and a water proof camera in it at one time. The people we were traveling with said they were going to buy one once they returned after using and seeing ours.

One thing that really impressed me was when one of the cofounders of SAFEGO emailed me asking for my feedback and to see what my impressions were. That ladies and gentleman is customer service!!!!!!!!! I explained that we had not had a chance to use it yet and I would post the review upon my return.

The only thing I would change or ask for was maybe a second model that is about 2-3 inches longer/wider (left to right). If it had been just slightly longer I would have been able to put a few more items in here along with what I had mentioned previously. Otherwise the product was perfect and did what I was hoping for and even exceeded my expectations.

Bought this portable safe for our island hopping vacation. The safe is roomy inside and we like the fact it is safe combo lock and a physical key for backup or visa-versa. Bought it in white to help resist sun absorption.

Works great by using the security cable to loop 2 beach chairs together to discourage theft. Color blends in with chairs and towels. Very handy so both of us can enjoy the water and snorkeling together instead of us taking turns watching our stuff.

Would highly recommend it to any traveler or one who is on the go all the time. Provides a peace of mind!

Worked perfectly for our trip to Paris and Berlin. We stayed in AirBnB’s where room safes or front desk safes were not an option. No worries as directed in the instructions, I found a secure location within our flat to leave my valuables (money, credit cards, passports, iPhones all fit comfortably.

The safe was easy to access as the “leash” had enough length to secure it and still access my belongings. The Safego lock box will be traveling with me in the future.

Key features

Nickel-plated, zinc-alloy lock and combination lock: can be opened with a custom combination or key. The lock mechanism is made of rust-resistant nickel-plated zinc alloy that is also resistant to water, sand and salt erosion. It comes with a wrist coil band (black) and 2 keys.

1c. Best budget: Master Lock Personal Safe 5900D

Master Lock is another well-known brand in the industry, and this is another high quality and highly affordable product from them.

The Master Lock Personal Safe is sturdy (made to withstand abuse, water resistant) and comes with a steel cable to wrap securely around a fixed object or use as a carrying handle.

We like the 4 digit combination lock as well (which gives 10,000 combinations and so is 10x more difficult to crack than a 3 digit lock), but the weight to capacity ratio is something that falls short relative to the Pacsafe Coversafe portable safe or the SafeGo Lockbox safe we recommended earlier.

What others have to say

Firstly, if you are looking for an indestructible safe to hold large items, this is not the safe for you.

This safe work great as long as you use it for it’s intended purpose. To keep your small valuables relatively secure while in a moderately safe environment. Example: Using it while on vacation to prevent room service from accidently “cleaning” your wallet or phone. Or, if you have small children around and want to keep them from your medicine, phone, etc.

Now, if you plan on attaching this portable safe to a light pole and storing your Rolex and Bentley keys in it while you go for a long walk in Central Park, well… you might be disappointed. The safe is heavy duty and would take some effort to pry open. But the body is plastic so this safe could be defeated with a pry bar or hammer.

Bottom line, this product is meant to be as a safeguard and deterrent, not an impenetrable safe. If you keep this in mind you will not be disappointed. I am glad that I purchased this safe and feel safer (no pun intended, well maybe) leaving items in my hotel room when heading down to the gym or breakfast.

We go to the Caribbean around twice yearly. We send a lot of time at the beach and usually get a Jeep Wrangler so we can go exploring. Because anyone can break into a softcover Jeep, we attach this to one of the bars inside. It holds our cards, phones (2 large iPhones) and money. No need to worry about someone breaking in.

Same with bringing to the beach at the resort when we want to bring our phones and some cash. Just attach it to hut pole or large lounger (no one is walking off with that 🙂). Never have to worry. You cannot go wrong.

This safe has become a MUST have on all our vacations. We no longer travel without it. We put two IPhones, cash and car keys in this little safe, locked it to a beach cabana, threw a towel over it and took off for a hour of snorkeling.

Never once worried about out belongings. We now use several of these as room safes AND as “hide a key” lock boxes outside our vacation condo for teens who come and go through out the day. They are invaluable!

2a. Best value: Milockie Hotel Safe Lock

The other alternative is the BloXsafe hotel room safe security lock. However, we think that is not worth the price (USD $300+, or GBP $140), unless you are securing valuables worth thousands or more.

That said, the Milockie Hotel Safe Lock is not perfect either. If you were to get this, there are two further upgrades we recommend you make.

Firstly, the padlock that comes with this is weak. It is equivalent to a 3 digit TSA lock.

A TSA lock can be easily broken. Further a 3 digit code only gives 1,000 combinations. A thief taking 1 – 2 seconds to test every combination will only need 16 – 33 minutes. If your number is in the middle, that will reduce it to 8 – 16 minutes.

Even the manufacturer recommends getting a stronger padlock (with a hasp of up to 0.5 inches)

What others have to say

This device will restore some confidence that the hotel safe is keeping your belongings, wallet, passports etc safe from theft. The ease with which hotel safes can be opened is frightening. If you google “open hotel safe” there are numerous videos showing how incredibly easy it is to open these safes even without any lock-picking skill.

This device will make it more secure by adding your own lock to the outside. The lock you use on the outside is now the weak link but that leaves it up to you to choose a good quality lock. In any case it will probably be a big improvement over the original safe lock which is poor for most standard hotel safes.

Is it plastic? Yes. Can the strap be cut? Yes. Does it come with a flimsy lock? Yes. Does the strap fray? Yes. Having said all that, this lock is nothing more than a deterrent. If someone is looking to rip you off and see this additional lock on your safe, they’re most likely gonna move on to the next guy.

I bought a stronger, beefier lock and it works great. As far as the strap fraying, the position of the strap can be changed.

We have taken this on easily, 8 or 9 trips that are usually 9 or 10 nights and it has performed flawlessly. I am writing this review while sitting at the lobby bar of a resort in Punta Cana while my $1800 is safely tucked away in the room safe protected with the additional security of the Milockie.

Key features

Extra security: secures hotel room safes – this added lock creates a barrier that have to be unlocked to get access to the safe.

Theft prevention: your valuables are secure. Even those with a hotel master override key or code for the safe can’t open the safe because the Milockie is in place and prevents the door from swinging open.

Use your own lock: a lock is included but it is suggested to use a more robust padlock (hasp up to 1/2 inch in diameter) for additional peace of mind.

Versatile: use on hotel safes, and gym lockers and even home safes too.

Compact for travel: can be carried on airplanes or in luggage with carry pouch.

Reviews and ratings

Do click the image below to check out product images and user reviews of the product:

Rated 3.6 / 5 stars from over 25 reviews

Over 55% of reviews are 4 and 5 stars

3. Door lock

If you are concerned about the area in which you stay in, or if your room does not have a locking chain, a portable door lock may come in particularly handy as a second line of defence while in your room.

3a. Best performance: Travelers Security Lock Portable Door Lock

For the best portable door lock out there in the market today, look no further than the Travelers Security Lock Portable Door Lock (USD $49.95).

First part: a thick machined aluminium bar with a large raised portion. You insert this raised portion into the door so that the door can be closed with the aluminium bar between the door and frame.

Second part: a notched block of aluminium with two bolts. This is attached into the notch on the bar, with the bolts tightened till they press against the door and frame. If anyone tries to push the door open, this door lock will apply any force taken and distribute it amongst the lock and door frame.

This is a machine, a workhorse of a product. With the thick aircraft aluminium block and tight lockup from the bolts (which is easily adjustable to fit any door / frame), your room is going to be super secure.

Unfortunately, one downside from the thick aluminium used is that this product is heavier (0.5 lbs / 8.5 oz / 240 g) than alternatives in the market. For instance, the Addalock (described later) only weighs (0.26 lbs / 4.2 oz / 119 g) and is cheaper (USD $21.95).

So if you wish to get one, you will have to decide which lock is most appropriate for your own needs based on the 3 key factors of security, weight and price.

What others have to say

I used to use a door stop as my slight room security as I slept. This thing is invincible. Somebody would have to be able to figure out how to kick your door down, or more likely shatter the door framing around the door jamb in order to get past this. Needless to say, crooks coming to your house in the middle of the night, don’t anticipate having to use a battering ram to get in.

I will use it for my bedroom, but using it in place of a deadbolt for the main outside house doors, while you’re inside, could work just as well. Only problem is you couldn’t use it on a door while you left the house, otherwise you couldn’t get in yourself, except through a door that didn’t have one of these on them.

I personally think this is a major obstacle for a crook trying to get into your bedroom, and they would probably be wise to give up after a minute. I’m sure 10 minutes could pass and they still wouldn’t be any closer to getting in. I can imagine this being indispensable for people having to sleep on the road.

I use this travel lock to secure myself in hotel rooms when travelling alone, as I suffer from sleep walking since I was quite young. This lock gives me the independence to travel alone with a sense of security, knowing that I will be safe from walking out of my room and that outsiders will not be able to come in.

The quality of the lock is top notch and it fits in *most door frames. Feels very sturdy once assembled and easy to travel with as it fits nicely in the carrying case.

This product is vastly superior to other locks on the market including the Addalock which is not nearly as secure. The only downfall to this lock is that there is no cutout for the latch to go through. I am guessing that the product was designed this way to be stronger than if it had a cutout.

The only other product that I can think of that may give the Travelers Security lock a run for its money is the Forceguard portable door lock which from what I can tell is no longer being sold.

This product is solidly made, and I would have no hesitation recommending​ it to a friend.

Key features

Durable and sturdy: aircraft aluminum construction provides you the ability to rest assured that the lock will hold up to the toughest of tests.

Revolutionary: only lock to be issued a U.S and Canadian utility patent, the lock uses Newton’s 3rd law of physics and applies any force taken and distributes it amongst the lock and door frame.

Easy to use: easy to follow instruction sheet and with YouTube installation videos. As long as you have a gap 1/8 -1/4 of an inch between the door and door frame you can rest assured that the lock will fit as designed in no time.

Portable and handy: handy carrying case enables you to take it with you. The lock fits in the palm of your hand and is completely portable, which means no matter where you are you will not be without reliable safety.

3b. Best value: Addalock

The Addalock is very easy to use. It is pretty much a thin strip of steel bar with prongs that stick out at one end. Stick that part into the door frame’s bolt hole and once you close the door, clip the red plastic part to the end of the bar and that is it.

As mentioned earlier, although the Travelers Security Lock Portable Door Lock is more secure than the Addalock, the Addalock is still secure in its own right, and half the weight and half the price of the Travelers lock.

So ultimately, it will depend on what you need.

What others have to say

I picked this up because I travel with my two young kids. It arrived right before a weekend trip to a convention. The “hotel” we booked was more like a motel with the door opening directly into the parking lot. To top it off, we were in the middle of some farmland with NO streetlights at all. Needless to say, the significant other was a little nervous. Addalock to the rescue!

The lock is a little tricky to place the first time. You have to put the metal tab into the catch and hold it flat while you close the door. Once that’s done it’s simple as pie to get the rest into place and there is ABSOLUTELY no way someone can open the door from the outside. Gave us a great sense of security!!

I purchased two of these, one for my apartment door and one for travel.

Home: this fits perfectly on my front door. It was tested when the maintenance man at my building showed up earlier than expected. He knocked, and before I could get to the door, he was already trying to open the door AND COULD NOT. This held, and he really pushing.

I know someone can get in if they really are determined, but the level of noise they’d cause would alert neighbors and give me time to react. Exactly what I bought it for.

Hotel: I’ve stayed in one hotel and this did fit. It was loose in the door jamb, but once the door was closed, it didn’t budge when I tested it.

Nothing is 100% secure. But this device definitely makes my door more secure then the lock and chain do! I highly recommend for anyone in an apartment and travelers.

I practiced taking the lock off to be sure I could do it in a fire. It takes less than 3 seconds to set up and remove. Very happy with purchase.

I travel to many countries for work and have to stay in hotels. Many people I work with have reported waking up with someone standing in their room in the middle of the night or when they get out of the shower.

I bought my Adalock almost a year ago and have been able to use it on every hotel door, except one. I always carry this and a wedge it for hotel door security. It has worked in four countries, including the US.

As far as it being difficult to remove, you need to practice with it so that you feel confident that you could remove it in an emergency. I can remove it in the dark in less than two seconds.

What others have to say

This works great at keeping your door closed and I know because I had my husband do his best, short of breaking the door, to get in after it was added to our bedroom door. Even with the door unlocked he couldn’t get it opened.

That said it can be a trick to get to work on some doors (we rent condos often when traveling and don’t trust that someone else hasn’t made copies of keys) and a trick to get removed sometimes so if you use it on a strange door practice taking it off in case you have to in an emergency.

Amazingly simple! Highly effective! Is bringing peace of mind to all the travelers in my family both on the road and in their homes! One limitation everyone should know, this unit only works on inward opening doors!

I’ve paid much more over the years on items that have failed to bring the peace of mind this simple unit brings!

Product dimensions

Reviews and ratings

Do click the image below to check out product images and user reviews of the product:

Rated 4.0 / 5 stars from over 85 reviews

Over 70% of reviews are 4 and 5 stars

4. Door motion alarm

If you are concerned about the area in which you stay in, or if your room does not have a locking chain, a door motion alarm may come in particularly handy both to alert you and to scare off any potential intruders.

Another form of alarm is the door wedge alarm, but we don’t recommend that as it is not as versatile.

This is because the distance between the door and the floor cannot be too narrow or too wide for it to hold in place, and it may even be seen by potential intruders outside your door.

Easy to set up on any door (just hang it from the door knob and place the clip in the door jamb).

Lightweight and compact.

Produces a decent 100 dB alarm (equivalent to jet take off at 305m; power lawn mower; motorcy.cle, etc).

Comes at a great price.

Do note that there is no on / off switch. This can be a good thing as any potential intruder will probably not know how to stop the alarm short of smashing it. But it will be a hassle if you are just testing the product.

What others have to say

I tend to be a light sleeper at hotels or B&Bs because I’m just plain paranoid. I often wake up at night thinking I heard the door, even with my home security alarm. I saw this product and after reading reviews decided to give it a try for my summer travel this year.

I’m so glad I did! Even my family thanked me for bringing this along because everyone felt like they could sleep easier and they knew that I was more relaxed as well.

It works verysimply and we tested it out and it worked. It’s easy to slip the sensor into any door gap. If someone jiggles the door and makes it fall out, or opens the door, the alarm will sound.

When you test it, the alarm seems simple if not quiet at first, but after a few “beeps” it feels like your brain will explode because it’s so loud and high-pitch. I can’t imagine how you’d sleep through it!

I also like it for at home when I’m in the shower, I can put it in the door and know if my kids come home without setting off the home alarm system. Very simple, compact, and brilliant. I wouldn’t travel without it anymore.

After having an incident with someone breaking in my AirBnB, I decided to buy this for future travels.

This alarm is very easy to set up and is pretty loud when used in a space that’s on the smaller side, i.e. if you were on the same level as the door you are using it on. I wouldn’t trust myself to hear it if I were in a second story and the door I put this on is on the first floor or something like that.

This product gives me a small sense of security when I travel. I’m hoping to never hear it when I am sleeping though!

The alarm from Lewis N. Clark is as equally easy to use, compactandlightweight as the alarm from Doberman.

To use, hold the thin blades together, slide them into the crack between the door and doorframe, then loop the cord around the door handle and adjust the toggle to keep it in place. Finally, you can set the alarm.

This same technique can be applied to sliding doors or to windows as well. No matter the situation, it will alert you to a possible intrusion.

However, the Doberman’s alarm is just slightly louder at 100 dB, while the Lewis N. Clark alarm performs at 91 dB (equivalent to a motorcycle at 25 ft / 7.6 m).

What others have to say

Terrific product!!!!!! I had the GE Personal Security Door Stop Alarm which was so-so (3 stars for me) but I found out that the GE doesn’t fit about 25% of doors – there just isn’t enough clearance to insert the GE in some doors.

But this thing worked 100% of the time for me while I was travelling in Europe last month. And it was tiny (about the size of a matchbox and 1/4 of the thickness) – great if you like travelling light. And it gives a loud sound.

I had some relatives who stayed in a hotel last year and someone jimmied the door lock and stole some of their jewelry and cash – that was so traumatic for all of us.

If you don’t want that to happen to you, you will appreciate having this useful travel accessory. A lot of security for such a small price. Good job Belle Hop!

After a bad experience at a hotel and watching numerous videos of how hotel thieves are able to bypass every type of hotel door lock (yes even the supposedly secure ones can be opened by sliding the “do not disturb” sign along the door edge), this was a worthwhile investment.